COLLEGE BASKETBALL: Kelly Williams helps Montclair shoot down TCNJ in return to Mercer County

EWING — Kelly Williams got the word from her mom that family and friends were heading to Packer Hall.

The former Hopewell Valley High standout didn’t disappoint them in her first return to Mercer County as a freshman at Montclair State.

Williams scored a career-high 13 points to help undefeated and 16th-ranked Montclair State to a 61-39 win over The College of New Jersey Wednesday night in a showdown of the two top women’s teams in the New Jersey Athletic Conference.

“It was exciting to be back,” said Williams, an All-Trentonian performer at Hopewell Valley. “I was pumped up for the game because I knew a lot of family and friends were coming. So, I was able to get into that mental set that I needed to turn it up and play my game.”

Montclair’s game has been very impressive as the win lifts them to 15-0 overall and 8-0 in the NJAC. The loss, the third in the last four games, drops the Lions to 9-5 overall and 5-2 in the league.

“They are a good team,” said TCNJ coach Dawn Henderson, of the Red Hawks. “My team feels terrible right now. But, you have a small error of margin when you play a team like that. We had some good performances and we had some bad performances.”

TCNJ, which shot just 14-for-40, got eight points from Candace Vigo with Kelly Roddy, Jessica Goldbach and Angelica Esposito each accounting for six.

Janitza Aquino led Montclair State with 15 points and 11 rebounds. Taylor Jeffers chipped in with 14 and Williams had her career high 13. Seton Hall transfer Nicosia Henry had eight steals.

The Red Hawks, who are the second ranked defense in Division III, utilized the press to perfection as they forced 29 turnovers and took the Lions out of their rhythm.

“As much as I thought we were ready we were nervous,” said Henderson. “I hope this prepares us for the next time we play them. We know they are good, but we can play better than we played today”

The Lions turned the ball over on eight of their first 11 possessions and quickly fell behind 14-2. Once things settled down they rallied to pull to 16-13 before Montclair

State finished the half on a 16-4 run to take a 32-16 advantage to the lockerroom.

“It is such a great feeling playing on this team,” said Williams. “We don’t have a lot of returners, but we have been able to blend on and off the court. It shows on the court.”

The Lions made another run in the second half pulling to 39-32 with 11:17 left in the game. But, Williams saved her best late as she sparked the Red Hawks in a 15-2 run that settled things.

“We missed a lot of free throws and layups and that changes the whole tenor of the game,” said Henderson. “We were overthinking things. We have to let our natural play happen. We still have things to work on, but we showed some fight and we showed some grit. I can only look at the positives.”